John Matthew "Matt" Collins

John Matthew Collins ("Matt") of Winhall, VT (formerly of West Hartford, CT) died on Wednesday, May 7, 2025, surrounded by family after a long and valiant battle with cancer. Matt was born on May 18, 1971, in Bristol, CT. He attended Kingswood-Oxford High School in West Hartford, CT, and graduated from Dartmouth College with honors in 1993. He went on to earn his MBA from Harvard Business School in 2000. Matt met his best friend and the love of his life, Christine Randall Collins, in high school, and their incredible love story spanned over 36 years. Matt married Christine in 1996, and they are blessed with three amazing daughters. Matt was immensely proud of his girls: Rosemary Erin Collins, 22, a senior graduating from Cornell University this month; Annabelle Shannon Collins, 19, a sophomore at Villanova University; and Caroline Casey Collins, 18, a senior at Stratton Mountain School who will be attending Harvard University in the fall.
Matt was a man of faith who was devoted to God, family, and friends. He was a loving and extraordinary husband, father, son, brother, brother-in-law, uncle, nephew, and friend. He helped many of his beloved nieces and nephews launch their careers and was always an enthusiastic mentor. His confidence and unabated high standards inspired everyone who knew him and allowed him to accomplish everything he set his mind to. Matt was universally loved and admired. He was a positive, dependable, and maverick presence for his large extended family, colleagues, and for so many friends. Matt's charm, integrity, and sarcastic sense of humor were unparalleled. He battled cancer with relentless positivity and was unfailingly selfless even in his darkest hours. He used his countless gifts to help others, and he left everyone he met grateful to have been in his presence.
Matt was an exceptionally brilliant man with an infectious presence, competitive spirit, and captivating gift of oratory. He was always up for a debate and would liberally share his ideas and jokes with his family and team members, most recently at Calix, Inc. where he was the Chief Commercial Operations Officer and also led the marketing team. He was immensely proud of his co-workers, his team, and the work that Calix has done to expand access to safer and better connectivity. Matt previously built and led marketing and strategy teams at Dun & Bradstreet (D&B), IBM, McKinsey, and Merck.
Despite his dedication and love of work, historical biographies, and endless podcasts, his most treasured time and greatest pride and love was his family. He loved exploring the world's ski mountains, biking, running, golfing, hiking with Storm, and spending time at Stratton Mountain and Old Lyme Shores. He also cherished watching World Cup ski races and the latest Star Wars and Avengers shows with his girls, getting to Fenway Park as often as possible, and keeping everyone on their toes at all times with a competitive wager and a twinkle in his eye.
There are no words to express the cavernous void created by Matt's passing. In addition to his wife and daughters, Matt is survived by his mom, Susan E. Geisel of Burlington, CT; his brother Timothy A. Collins and sister-in-law Dr. Siobhan Collins of Old Saybrook, CT; his sister Melinda Eberle and brother in law Daniel Eberle of Haddam, CT; his brother-in-law John Taylor of West Hartford, CT; sister-in-law, Amy Lynch of Simsbury, CT; sister-in-law, Margaret Brodeur and brother-in-law Christopher Brodeur of Glastonbury, CT; sister-in-law Dr. Mary Randall and brother-in-law Dr. Lawrence Neureither of Simsbury, CT; and best friends, Christopher and Kjeldy McGoldrick of West Hartford, CT. Matt cared deeply for each of his 27 nieces and nephews and the McGoldrick boys.
The family will receive friends on Tuesday, May 13th, from 4:00-7:00 PM, at the Church of St. Timothy, 1116 North Main Street, West Hartford. A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at 10:00 AM on Wednesday, May 14th, at the Church of St. Timothy. Burial will follow at Mount St. Benedict Cemetery, Bloomfield. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Matt's honor to the Share Winter Foundation https://sharewinterfoundation.org/?form=donate
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